
Degrade and deny
Think tank: Adam Smith Institute
Author(s): James Gillespie
August 1, 2024
This report from UK think tank the Adam Smith Institute considers potential next steps for the UK’s sanctions strategy.
This paper considers potential next steps for the UK’s sanctions strategy, drawing on the academic literature and the growing evidence base to suggest what an “Economic Sanctions Strategy 2.0” might look like. In doing so, it seeks to build on the strengths of the Deter, Disrupt and Demonstrate approach, whilst identifying areas for improvement.
In particular, it advocates for a more tightly focused approach to sanctions, centered on a primary objective of degrading the target’s ability to achieve 7 its goals and denying it the tactical flexibility to circumvent the restrictions. Objectives such as deterring future conduct or demonstrating the UK’s commitment to certain international norms remain valid, but should ideally be pursued as part of an overall strategy centered on eroding the target’s capacity.
Another way of putting it is that “disrupt” should frame the strategy, with “deter” and “demonstrate” downstream of it.
The paper concludes with a case study focusing on the sanctions placed on Russia, to demonstrate how this new approach could translate into concrete policy choices.